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Christmas Quiz for car buffs


tony_brookes

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Ah, that's the famous <i>Morgan Godspeed</i>, the 1939 version, I believe. It looks like the very car that T.E. Lawrence drove to victory over the German juggernaut of Auto Unions, Mercedes and ME-109's at the German Grand Prix that year at the Nurburgring with the Fuehrer in attendance! The car had a birch sapling frame and was powered by a bilge pump. Lawrence raced like a madman, driving <i>under</i> the wheels of Baron Von Richtoffen's V-36 supercharged Auto Union on the final turn to snare the victory.

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The Fuehrer though it was the Polish entry and was quite furious! Quite the mix up, as we all know what happened next!

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'Did you look up the car number in the programme or are you just an enthusiast ?'

 

No I didn't go to Goodwood this year :-( But I couldn't do my job if I didn't know something about classic racing cars. I also like any Chapman designed/built Lotus, each one from this period onwards took radical looks at the technology available and moved it on in strides. A great man.

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Someone really knows their 1950's F1 cars. The Lotus 16 was very small,light and underpowered compared to the contemporary Ferrari and Vanwall. Colin Chapman tried to use small frontal area, great roadholding and light weight to make up for the power deficiency. Unfortunately, teething problems, especially with cooling, resulted in a rash of DNF's. Chapman's next F1 Lotus, the 18, along with the 1959 Cooper, firmly established the rear engine layout and in the hands of Sterling Moss the Lotus 18 established Chapman as a leading F1 constructor. Cooling remained a chronic Lotus problem, there is a wonderful picture taken of Sterling Moss(with a Leica)at Monaco with the Lotus side panels off so both he and the car stayed cool.

 

On the subject of Leicas and racing photos, Road & Track magazine has a collection of Phill Hill's Leica IIIf photos from the early 50's available to print collectors.

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Steve, I'm not familiar with that, but I just did a Google search and it looks like a fun bit of satire. I'll have to see if I can get it via my local library or Netflix. I hear that Lotus is finally importing the Elise to the U.S. next year. A bit heavier than the European version, but it will have a higher hp Toyota motor when it arrives.
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I dunno, seems a good match to me. Since chassis are what the English do best and reliable, high-revving, powerful 4-cylinder motors are what the Japanese do best, it seems a no-brainer. (If only they could have sourced the VTEC motor from Honda!) Besides, it's a well-practiced tradition in F1 to have a chassis from one manufacturer and the engine from another.
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If you are interested in vintage racing pictures you must visit <a href="http://www.klemcoll.com/gallery.asp">the Klemantaski site</a>. Many of the pictures were taken with a Leica, e.g. <a href="http://www.klemcoll.com/gallery.asp?cmd=details&id=56C1A-39">this</a> one. <br>

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Footnote for Leica-spotters: On page 309 of Klemantaski�s autobiography there is a facsimile of an Italian newspaper clip reporting from the Giro di Sicilia of 1956, won by Peter Collins with Klemantaski as co-driver. A picture shows Klemantaski, together with Collins inside the laurel, shooting back at the news photographer with his Leica. <br>

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Klemantaski was much more than a racing photographer, His high speed images of the Barnes Wallis spinning bombs were critical to their development and subsequent use in the British Lancaster Dam Buster raid of May 1943. The racing pictures Klemantaski took of Peter Collins in the 1957 Mille Miglia are considered classics as most of them were taken at speeds well over 200kph. The man was talented and brave beyond measure.
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They used a Lotus 16 in the movie Grand Prix. It was supposed to be Brian Bedford's characters brother's World Championship winning car.

Bedford is seen hopping in it at his estate while he is trying to recover from his injuries at Monaco. I remember seeing a picture of the car with Graham Hill driving in 1958 I believe. A great era for motor racing.

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